Boris Diaw's Cheese Tastes, Steve Nash's Library

Attempting to conjure up some pre-game blog items, I thought of this gem: Boris Diaw's from France. French people love cheese. Ergo, Boris Diaw must have given at least several dozen interviews with cheese journalists in which he discusses his favorites.

Sadly, no dice on that one. The best I can offer you is this: Boris Diaw likes "good food. Growing up in the Southern western part of France it could not have been different. I am found of magret de canard (duck filet)."

(Southern western part of France: Sheep's milk cheese from the Pyrenees? Cantal? Roquefort? Is he found of those, perchance?)

But as long as we're on the subject of "things Boris Diaw likes," let's not forget the following things, helpfully listed on his Web site: animal, all kinds of musics, good wines, DVDs, the movie "Braveheart," Mel Gibson, Denzel Washington and Catherine Zeta-Jones, photography, play tarot with Frederic Fauthoux, read, Africa, discover new countries, the color black and darkness, the number 13 and cactus in Phoenix. Dislikes? Pollution and people that abuse animals.

Idea No. 2: Find funny Steve Nash quotes to pair with our library of funny Gilbert Arenas quotes. No dice on that one either. This page of Nash quotes includes the following:

"My best move is probably my pull up jump shot."

"Basketball isn't as popular in Canada as it is in the US. Hockey is by far the most popular sport in Canada."

"I don't think coaches should have to wear mic's. It is an invasion of privacy. We are trying to accomplish things, and wearing microphones may hinder development by straining the nature of relationships coaches and players have."

Nash, who once shared his thoughts about Immanuel Kant after a journalist found The Philosophy of Kant in the spartan townhouse he rented in Dallas, is a serious reader. He is currently making his way through Alexander Solzhenitsyn's classic, One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, and wonders aloud why he continues to struggle with Dostoevsky's fiction. On the subject of music, he is voluble, reiterating his adoration of Radiohead, including a rapturous concert he attended a couple of years back in Vancouver. Over a second beer, and while finishing my pizza - he hasn't eaten since early afternoon - he launches into a defence of The Smiths and their former lead singer Morrissey, a favourite of Alejandra's. "After everything else," Nash summarizes, "it's still the Stones and Bowie for me."

Later that night he had a dream about beating a dead horse well beyond death. Crazy Russians.

Dan, is it possible that Boris thought you were mocking his homeland by asking about cheese? I hope you make it clear to all French players that you have an unhealthy obsession with their preferred cow byproduct.